Liquor Literacy | Folklore and Lambswool

This week I’m excited to start a new post series called Liquor Literacy. I have grand ideas of someday being someone who knows how to whip up cocktails at extravagant parties but in order to do that I need to learn how to actually make some drinks. I need to become literate in the way of liquor, if you will, and like most things I do, I’d like to find a way to connect it to books and reading. In Liquor Literacy, I’ll be sharing drink recipes I try and recommending books that pair well and capture the same feel as the drink. Often, the drinks will be inspired by certain books or authors and many will be drinks that were common long ago but aren’t made often anymore. 

Today’s drink is inspired by the autumnal wind sweeping across the land right now, turning the leaves and chilling our bones. It’s the time for apple picking and warm drinks and I’ve got the perfect thing for both. 

The Drink

The drink is called wassail or lambswool. Some say wassail and lambswool are different drinks, some say they’re the same. From my own research, I’ve determined that they’re different but very similar drinks and both were drunk for wassailing. According to Samuel Johnson’s Dictionary published in 1756, “wassail” means, “a liquor made of apples, sugar, and ale; a drunken bout; a merry song.” I’ve decided to go with a traditional lambswool recipe. Recipes vary, more modern interpretations involving more types of alcohol, but I’m using one that seems a little more traditional with an ale or cider base, apples, and spices.

The History of Lambswool and Wassail

Perhaps you know the word “wassail” from the Christmas carol Here We Come A-Caroling, the original of which is Here We Come A-Wassailing. In ancient England, wassailing was a tradition of either traveling from house to house singing with a bowl of wassail in exchange for gifts (this became caroling) or going to the apple orchard. In the orchard, they would sing and drink to banish evil spirits and encourage the good spirits to help bring about a great apple harvest the next year. Among other celebrations including a wassail king and queen, people also left cider-soaked cakes at the bases of apple trees and poured cider straight on the roots to promote the health of the tree and show the good spirits the bounty of that season’s fruit. It was usually celebrated in winter around Twelfth Night, Christmas Eve, or sometimes New Year’s Eve. There’s a little debate about the where the name “lambswool” came from. Since the drink is meant to have foam on top, it would seem to come from its resemblance to lambswool but it’s been proposed that the word comes from the Irish pagan holiday Lamas Ubhal where a similar apple and ale based drink was drunk. I’m a little early with my own wassailing but apple season is upon us and I think this hot drink is perfect for a cozy night reading by the fire. 

The Recipe

I’ve seen several iterations of nearly the exact same recipe on several websites in my research and decided to use the version of that traditional recipe that includes ground ginger because more warm spiciness can’t hurt. It’s thought that ale-based recipes go back further than cider-based. As with everything, there have been slight variations and changes made across the centuries. How to cook the apples, when to add the sugar and other small details of this drink have seen change and debate but the recipe I’m using is based on a snippet of a recipe given in a 17th century poem by Robert Herrick, Twelfe-Night. Other recipes from this time period are very similar and are believed to go back to Anglo-Saxons and Celts. 

1.5 liters of ale of traditional (hard) cider 

6 small baking apples (I’m using McIntosh)

1 nutmeg freshly grated (or 2-3 tsps of ground nutmeg)

1 tsp ground ginger

3/4 cup (150g) brown sugar

Note: I couldn’t find large bottles of “traditional cider” so I opted for what made the most sense—a six pack of regular hard cider. Traditional cider just means alcoholic, so I’m sure there’s no big difference. For about 1.5 liters (which is 50.72 ounces) I used a little over 4 bottles. 

If you’d prefer, I’m sure this recipe would work just fine with nonalcoholic cider. 

Directions

Preheat oven to 250 degrees (120c). 

Core the apples and place on a baking tray a couple of inches apart. Bake for about an hour until they’re soft. My apples took about an hour and ten minutes.

While the apples are baking, begin making the lambswool. Start by adding the brown sugar to a large pot and adding a small amount of cider or ale until the sugar is covered. Heat gently and stir continuously until the sugar dissolves. Add ginger and nutmeg, stir. Pour in the rest of the cider/ale slowly, stirring. Let it heat for 10 minutes. 

While the cider is heating, peel the skin from the apples (this is thoroughly satisfying) and mash them with a fork. I did involve a potato masher to make sure it was smooth but I’d recommend skipping the hand mashing altogether and tossing the peeled apples into a food processor if you have one.

Add the apples to the cider and stir. Let it heat on low for about a half an hour. When it’s warmed through, whisk vigorously to create the foam on top. It will take several minutes or you can use an immersion blender if you have one. Unfortunately and for reasons unknown, my own lambswool looks decidedly un-woolly. I’m not sure where I went wrong but I wish you better luck. 

That’s it! Ladle into mugs and serve! 

Pairs Well With 

 

Once Upon a River

by Diane Setterfield

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Quiet and mysterious, this story of strange happenings and magical realism opens in an inn on the river where stories flow as steadily as the ale. An atmospheric tale, Once Upon a River is the perfect read with a mug of lambswool in your hand.

On a dark midwinter’s night in an ancient inn on the river Thames, an extraordinary event takes place. The regulars are telling stories to while away the dark hours, when the door bursts open on a grievously wounded stranger. In his arms is the lifeless body of a small child. Hours later, the girl stirs, takes a breath and returns to life. Is it a miracle? Is it magic? Or can science provide an explanation? These questions have many answers, some of them quite dark indeed.

 

 

 

 

 

Grimm’s Complete Fairy Tales

by The Brothers Grimm

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These tales, much like the lambswool, may not be as sweet as you’d suspect. Twisted and dark, these fairytales walk the line between whimsical and strange and are a great accompaniment to a mug or two of lambswool. 

For almost two centuries, the stories of magic and myth gathered by the Brothers Grimm have been part of the way children — and adults — learn about the vagaries of the real world. Cinderella, Rapunzel, Snow-White, Hänsel and Gretel, Little Red-Cap (a.k.a. Little Red Riding Hood), and Briar-Rose (a.k.a. Sleeping Beauty) are only a few of more than 200 enchanting characters included here. Lyrically translated and beautifully illustrated, the tales are presented just as Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm originally set them down: bold, primal, just frightening enough, and endlessly engaging.

 

 

 

In matching books to this drink, what really inspired me was the folklore and history of lambswool, the warmth of it that makes me want to be cozy by a fire, and the balance between sweet, spicy and the bit of an edge from the hard cider. I think these books live up to those qualities.

Final Thoughts

Lambswool tastes good. It made me cringe a bit but I couldn’t tell if it was from the general taste of alcohol or just the tartness of apple cider. I can’t really say it was more tart than regular hot cider, which also makes me cringe. A word of advice: embrace the pulp. There are six pureed apples in this drink–you’re going to have bits of apple in every sip so just be prepared for it. I got generally favorable responses from family who tried the drink and I myself was pleased with how it came out. I could see myself making it again, which would give me another chance to perfect the woolly part of lambswool.

I knew going into this that lambswool was more laborious than the average drink but it was worth it to make such a unique, old recipe. Perhaps this would be the perfect drink for your next party this autumn—it’s uncommon, a conversation starter with an interesting history, and, most importantly, it tastes nice. Or perhaps you’ll take it wassailing through the orchards, beseeching spirits for a good apple harvest. Whatever you do, I hope you enjoyed this first foray into Liquor Literacy.

I leave you with the words of Robert Herrick:

Next crown a bowl full

      With gentle lamb’s wool:

Add sugar, nutmeg, and ginger,

      With store of ale too;

      And thus ye must do

To make the wassail a swinger.

Thanks for reading, 

Madison